Accident Overview
On December 27, 2014, about 1545 eastern standard time, a Pitts Special S-1S, registration N49294, and a Piper PA-28-140, registration N95297, collided during approach to Carroll County Regional Airport (DMW) in Westminster, Maryland. Both aircraft sustained substantial damage. The private pilot and passenger aboard the Piper were not injured, while the private pilot of the Pitts received serious injuries. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plans were filed for either local flight.
Sequence of Events
The Piper departed Lancaster Airport (LNS) in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, about 1500, and the Pitts departed DMW about 1545. Both flights were conducted under 14 CFR Part 91. The Piper was equipped with two-way radio communication; the Pitts was not. Upon returning to DMW, the Piper entered the left downwind leg for runway 16. The Piper pilot reported announcing his position on the Common Traffic Advisory Frequency (CTAF) during each leg of the traffic pattern. While on a long final approach at about 75 knots, the Piper pilot observed a "small red aircraft" on the downwind leg near midfield.
The Pitts pilot reported that he was not aware of a midair collision until speaking with witnesses. He recalled flying a "tight" airport traffic pattern. In a written statement, the Pitts pilot stated he entered the pattern parallel to the upwind leg of runway 16 at 1,600 feet and 100 mph. He flew the crosswind and downwind legs at the same altitude and airspeed, and flew a "descending base and final" at 90 mph. A hand drawing showed he established on final about 1,000 feet from the runway threshold.
Witness Accounts
Witnesses reported that while the Piper was on final approach, the Pitts came from behind and above the Piper and converged on top about 100 yards from the approach end of runway 16 at about 100 feet above ground level. The Piper landed on the runway, and the Pitts entered a steep dive and subsequently impacted the ground. A witness operating the Unicom/CTAF frequency recalled hearing "chatter" but could not recall specific communications.
Aircraft Examination
Examination by a Federal Aviation Administration inspector revealed that the Pitts' top and bottom right wings had separated at the wing spar, the right outboard elevator section sustained substantial damage, and the right main landing gear completely separated at the strut. The Piper showed a tire mark and compression damage on the fuselage and left cockpit window above the pilot's seat, and another tire mark on the cowling aft of the propeller. The damage matched the width of the Pitts' tailwheel landing gear and main landing gear tire, respectively. The Piper's propeller exhibited a black mark similar to the Pitts' main landing gear dimensions.
Both operators reported no preimpact mechanical malfunctions or failures. The accident was not captured on radar. The Piper pilot used an Adventure Pilot iFly 700 GPS and Foreflight on an iPad; the Pitts pilot used an earlier version of Foreflight on an iPhone. The iPad and iFly GPS were sent to the NTSB Vehicle Recorders Laboratory. According to the laboratory report, the Foreflight application was not recording at the time of the accident and retained no pertinent data. The Adventure Pilot iFly 700 GPS captured the flight: the Piper approached from the east at about 1,600 feet msl, entered the downwind leg for runway 16 about 1539, and began final about 1.5 nm from the threshold at about 1,237 feet msl. The last GPS data indicated the Piper at about 1,600 feet from the runway threshold at 919 feet msl.
Airport and Weather
Carroll County Regional Airport is a publicly owned, non-towered airport with an elevation of about 789 feet msl and a traffic pattern altitude of 1,599 feet msl. Recorded weather at DMW at the time included clear skies, visibility of 10 miles, and wind from 260 degrees at 4 knots.